Cities around the country struggle with what is the strategic advantage they have over other areas. Knowing what your strengths are and building upon that through a coherent strategy is what successful cities do.

Cities like Buffalo, NY continue to struggle as far as focusing on a specific strength to build upon. The . . . → Read More: Milwaukee Reinventing Itself As A Center For Water Innovation]]>

Cities around the country struggle with what is the strategic advantage they have over other areas. Knowing what your strengths are and building upon that through a coherent strategy is what successful cities do.

Cities like Buffalo, NY continue to struggle as far as focusing on a specific strength to build upon. The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus is where many folks believe the emphasis should be. Buffalo’s Medical Campus is recognized for the cancer treatment provided at Roswell Park and a growing cluster of health facilities and medical research companies. Lot’s of cities have top notch medical facilities (Cleveland, Boston, Baltimore etc.), but I suppose one has to work with the assets that are available.

The City of Milwaukee has taken an interesting approach by transforming itself from an old industrial city into a center for water innovation and research. As reported in a Governing.com article, this effort grew from the efforts of two local CEOs.

With a 130 water related companies, the two CEOs convened a meeting of local companies and civic leaders to market Milwaukee as a “water hub”. This effort has led to the following:

- Creation of the Water Council, a nonprofit organization that brings together the region’s water industries and universities. This summer the Water Council is moving into a renovated 100 year old building that it will share with several water related start-up companies.

- The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), with $50 million in state backing, created the School of Freshwater Sciences in 2011, the only graduate program of its kind in the country. According to the CEO of the Water Council “The goal is create a world hub that grows companies and entrepreneurs [focused on] developing ways to use water more efficiently and return it at a high quantity and quality.”

- An 18 acre brownfield site adjacent to downtown is going to be turned into a water research and tech park.

An effort spearheaded by the private sector with government support is creating a unique place for the city of Milwaukee. Hopefully your city is working towards its own unique efforts.

In 1947 the New York State legislature passed the Wilson-Pakula Act which gave the leaders of political parties the power to authorize nonparty members to run on their ballot lines. The Act allows a registered Democrat or Republican candidate to run on another party line such as Conservative or Independence, providing permission is . . . → Read More: Let Voters Decide, Not Party Bosses]]>

In 1947 the New York State legislature passed the Wilson-Pakula Act which gave the leaders of political parties the power to authorize nonparty members to run on their ballot lines. The Act allows a registered Democrat or Republican candidate to run on another party line such as Conservative or Independence, providing permission is granted by party leaders.

Only eight states allow for what is called fusion voting: Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Mississippi, Oregon, South Carolina, Vermont and New York.

As the New York Daily News stated in an editorial: “Politicians love for their names to appear often on the ballot as a way of suggesting popularity. Some recent examples: The state Senate co-majority leaders, Republican Dean Skelos and Democrat Jeff Klein, each ran on four lines in November. Their opponents were relegated to one spot on the ballot. In 2010, Cuomo had the blessing of three parties, including the Independence Party”.

The problem is how does one get permission from party leaders to run on another line? I wish the answer was solely about candidate qualifications and their stance on issues, but often times such decisions are made by making a deal. Political deals typically involve money and patronage. Recently New York State Senator Malcolm Smith a registered Democrat was arrested for being involved with a scheme to get permission to run on the Republican line for the New York City Mayoral race by bribing Republican leaders with cash payments.

In the 2009 New York City mayoral race Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, an enrolled independent, needed permission from Republican Party leaders to run for re-election as a Republican. Since then, he has donated about $800,000 to the five Republican county organizations. Coincidence? I think not.

Governor Andrew Cuomo recently criticized the Wilson-Pakula Act stating that it encourages “corruption and the appearance of corruption,” tempting some to sell their nominations to the highest bidder. “You’re forcing people to go to the party bosses”. Cuomo has proposed eliminating the Wilson-Pakula Act, which would allow candidates to obtain signatures from registered voters for all party lines, taking away the power of party bosses to make such decisions.

In my opinion if you want to run on a party line then you should have to be a registered voter of that party. We need to reduce the power of party bosses who make deals for cash and patronage. Eliminating the Wilson-Pakula Act, is a step in the right direction and I applaud Cuomo for addressing this issue.

When I ran for a Town Clerk position, I forwarded letters seeking to appear before the Conservative and Independence Party committees. Without being given the opportunity to be heard, their Wilson-Pakula authorizations were made and provided to another candidate. Instead of party bosses making such decisions, I would rather give that power to voters to decide whether a candidate is worthy of a petition signature to place their name on the ballot.

What do you think?

Not much of substance typically happens at a Erie County Legislature meeting (Buffalo, NY). A typical Legislature meeting consists of resolutions honoring people . . . → Read More: The Smoke And Mirrors Of Press Releases]]>
It is only a press release and I should not let it bother me, but I feel compelled to highlight the smoke and mirrors of a recent politician press release.

Not much of substance typically happens at a Erie County Legislature meeting (Buffalo, NY). A typical Legislature meeting consists of resolutions honoring people who recently passed away, tabling a few local laws that have been introduced, receiving and filing some letters and passing a few symbolic resolutions that call upon the state or federal government to do something.

You can view the minutes from past leg meetings and see the agenda for upcoming meetings here. As not much substance happens at a Legislature the headline of Lynn Marinelli’s press release caught my eye: Legislator Marinelli Tourism Initiative Receives Unanimous Approval.

Interested in learning what great idea of Marinelli’s received unanimous approval I read the press release. What the Legislature unanimously approved was a resolution that supported continuing the operation of the Niagara Falls Maid of the Mist. The press release stated further that “Marinelli’s initiative also supports continued state investment …for ongoing infrastructure improvements to walkways and other visitor amenities”.

So what exactly is Marinelli’s “Initiative”? It is the passage of a symbolic resolution regarding a tourist attraction that the Erie County Legislature has no say over, that supports the expenditure of state dollars.

Marinelli’s resolution is nothing but smoke and mirrors. It gives the impression that she and her fellow Legislators are doing something of importance. There is no idea contained in this “initiative” and no expenditure of county dollars, just an expression of support.

Marinelli is not the only elected official guilty of exaggerated hype in a press release but her press release is an example of how far elected officials have to stretch to make it appear that they are doing something signficant. Check out the web pages for County Legislators touting their efforts and what you see is Legislators sharing information about free rabies clinics, income tax filing assistance, civil service exams. All nice things, but nothing really of substance.

I have contacted every Erie County legislator by email on three different occasions and offered to assist in drafting resolutions regarding:

- The establishment of an independent Citizens Budget Review Commission, where members are selected by community organizations and not Legislators.

- The establishment of 3 high priority goals for each County department. Without agreed upon goals between the County Executive, Legislators and department heads, it is difficult to accomplish anything and to hold people accountable.

- The adoption of an Open Government policy, which would require taking specific steps to make County government operate in a more open and transparent manner.

Not a single legislator expressed an interest or willingness to introduce any of the above resolutions. In fact most don’t even provide the courtesy of acknowledging receipt of my email. Yet meeting after meeting time and effort is spent on resolutions that honor folks or hype “initiatives” that really aren’t.

Oh well, I feel better now that I got that off my chest. Is your local government meeting more fluff than substance?

Oregon’s Secretary of State Kate Brown is seeking to make voter registration of individuals automatic. Brown’s plan, would allow Oregon to automatically register new voters at the time they apply for a driver’s license. Those new voters would initially be registered as unaffiliated with any political party. At a later date, they’d receive . . . → Read More: Should Voter Registration Be Automatic?]]>

Oregon’s Secretary of State Kate Brown is seeking to make voter registration of individuals automatic. Brown’s plan, would allow Oregon to automatically register new voters at the time they apply for a driver’s license. Those new voters would initially be registered as unaffiliated with any political party. At a later date, they’d receive a postcard by mail allowing them to choose a party affiliation or opt out of voter registration altogether, should they desire.

Since 1998, Oregon has had a unique voting system in place whereby people registered voters receive ballots in the mail, which they can return by mail or drop off at designated sites. Oregon has one of the highest voting rates in the country but 25% of eligible voters are not registered to vote.

If approved, Oregon will become the first state in the country to automatically register people to vote.

As pointed out in a Governing.com article critics argue that it shouldn’t necessarily be easy to register to vote. “What we really need is an American electorate that takes the time to study the issues,” says Greg Leo, executive director of the Oregon Republican Party. “All of these things move away from that. We make it so easy for people to participate that I worry they won’t take the time to be an informed voter and to really study the issues.” Leo says it’s not just the act of voting that’s an important responsibility of citizenship — but the act of registering to vote is meaningful too, and the government shouldn’t take it upon itself to handle it.

What do you think about automatic registration of people when they apply for a drivers license?

Democratic State Senator Malcolm Smith wanted to run for Mayor of New York City. Smith’s strategy was to run on the Republican line. Under New . . . → Read More: The Corrupting Influence Of Money In New York Politics]]>
The arrest of several New York elected officials and political party leaders shows once again how the influence of money and minor party political lines results in corruption.

Democratic State Senator Malcolm Smith wanted to run for Mayor of New York City. Smith’s strategy was to run on the Republican line. Under New York State law in order for a non registered Republican to run on the Republican line, Republican party leaders must agree and sign a written authorization form called a Wilson Pakula (named after the legislators that introduced the law back in 1947). In order to receive the necessary authorization Smith needed to obtain approval from 3 of the 5 Republican County party leaders.

The deal making nature of politics brought together Senator Smith, a New York City Councilmember, a cooperating witness assisting the FBI due to his own legal problems, two Republican party leaders and an undercover FBI agent posing as a real estate developer. In an effort to provide Smith the written authorization he needed for his campaign, $40,000 was paid to two Republican party leaders by the undercover developer and more money was promised after the authorizations were signed. Smith agreed to help the undercover developer obtain state funding for his project in Spring Valley, NY. Amazingly the Mayor and Deputy Mayor of Spring Valley also stuck their hand out and sought payments for their approvals of the undercover agent’s real estate development.

The criminal complaint provides an interesting look into the dark side of corrupt New York politics.

- As part of the deal a New York City Councilmember and State Senator Smith promised to steer tax dollars to development projects.
- The Mayor of Spring Valley, requested to be paid for her support of the project by directing the cooperating witness to form a company with a relative of the Mayor.
- The Deputy Mayor of Spring Valley received $10,000 cash as a requirement of his support for a real estate project.
- The New York City Councilman requested campaign cash assistance from the cooperating witness and promised to put someone on his congressional pay role as directed by the cooperating witness if his campaign for congress was succesful. The Councimember also promised to steer discretionary city dollars to the cooperating witnesses project. After being paid $7,500 cash the Councilmember stated “”Money is what greases the wheels good, bad, or indifferent.”
- At another meeting the undercover developer gave the Councilmember $6,500 and asked to receive $20,000 discretionary funding for his project. The Councilmember replied by stating: “Absolutely, that’s easy, that’s not even an issue, not even an issue. In fact, I might even be able to get you more.” The Councilmember received over $40,000 in bribe payments and wrote letters seeking $80,000 in city discretionary funds to the cooperating witness for consulting fees.
- In exchange for negotiating the payoffs for Smith to Republican party leaders, the Councilmember made it clear that he expected to be paid by being appointed Deputy Police Commissioner or Deputy Mayor should Smith become Mayor of New York and the Councilmember needed money to address his mortgage situation.
- When one of the Republican party leaders met with the undercover developer in addition to his direct financial payoff the leader requested that the developer do business with his insurance agency and his law firm, which would make things “very easy”.

This whole story is truly incredible. It shows you how taxpayer funds are steered in exchange for campaign contributions and outright bribes. Reform is needed at the state and local levels in New York. Some steps that could be taken:

- Stricter campaign contribution laws;
- Public financing of elections to encourage more competitive elections and to lessen the influence of big donors;
- Eliminate the use of Wilson Pakula authorizations. In order to run on a political party line, you should be registered to vote on that line; End the deal making of providing political lines to candidates in exchange for money and patronage jobs;
- Utilize professional managers to hire key department head positions who are not allowed by ethic rules to run for office or seek campaign dollars. Allowing hiring and contracting decisions to be made without regard to politics.

- The Mayor has issued an Open Data Executive Order.

- Created an Open Data Guidebook for city departments.

- . . . → Read More: Philadelphia Making Open Government Happen]]>
Philadelphia is one of the leading cities in the country as far as making government more open, transparent and collaborative with citizens. Some of the great things being done in Philadelphia are:

- The Mayor has issued an Open Data Executive Order.

- Created an Open Data Guidebook for city departments.

- Created an Open Government Plan.

- Philadelphia has a schedule of information to be made available to the public.

- Assisting with all of this is an Open Data Working group, comprised of city government representatives. The group is open to any city employees that are interested in open government.

- Feedback, comments and input is actively sought from members of the public by way of a Google Group that anyone can join.

All of the great items above can serve as a guide for making government in your community more open, transparent and engaging for citizens.

The Buffalo News recently rated the leadership qualities of Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. Surveys were sent to 320 individuals identified by The Buffalo News as leaders in one of three sectors of the community: government and political; business; or community/civic sector, which includes religious, educational, and arts . . . → Read More: Leadership Lessons From Buffalo, NY]]>

The Buffalo News recently rated the leadership qualities of Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. Surveys were sent to 320 individuals identified by The Buffalo News as leaders in one of three sectors of the community: government and political; business; or community/civic sector, which includes religious, educational, and arts and cultural organizations, as well as neighborhood leaders.The News received responses from 154 individuals, an overall return rate of about 48 percent. There were 117 responses to the county executive survey, 128 to the mayoral survey.

With an overall score of a C, the Buffalo News summed up Mayor Brown’s results as “The mayor’s best grades in the 18 categories are for intellect, temperament, work ethic and fiscal management. His lowest are in his vision, willingness to take unpopular stands, transparency and accessibility.”

The News stated further:

“While keeping city finances in check in a tough economic climate and generally making City Hall more business friendly, the administration is also seen as steeped in politics, lacking vision and overly cautious – afraid to take the risks and tackle the tough issues that many movers and shakers believe must be confronted if Buffalo and the region it leads are to succeed.”

“The mayor is not being the driver, He’s comfortable in whatever seat he is in. To me, that is unfortunate. Sometimes you have to be the driver of the bus. As mayor, he needs to be in that position more.”

“He’s not a person you can talk to,” said a neighborhood group leader, who noted that a police officer guards the mayor’s door on the second floor of City Hall.

With an overall score of C+ the Buffalo News summed up County Executive Poloncarz’s results as: “He scored average or above average on each category. His top grades were in intelligence and work ethic. His lowest scores were for vision and temperament. That was hammered home by the top weaknesses cited – those related to his personality, a perceived lack of vision and a potential to be too partisan.”

Survey respondents stated the following about Poloncarz: “There’s no personality or charisma,” “Not friendly,” “Thinks he knows it all,” said another community leader. “He’s a bit too ‘my way or the highway,’.

A third survey asked respondents to rank 25 local leaders – as identified by The Buffalo News – on their relative effectiveness in moving the Buffalo Niagara region forward. Howard Zemsky, 53, according to the survey results is displaying the most leadership when it comes to moving the region forward.

Zemsky Had the vision and ability to transform a 100-year-old vacant 600,000 square foot warehouse into a unique office building with its own bank, restaurants, day-care center, fitness center, conference center and private taxi service. When he discussed undertaking the project which cost him millions of dollars of his own money “people looked at me like I was crazy,” stated Zemsky.

What does Zemsky have that Brown and Poloncarz don’t? According to the survey results:

- “He’s a dreamer” who turns his visions into reality”
- “He listens. He has a total proven record.”
- “He is one of the most selfless guys you’ll ever meet. He does things in an unassuming way.”
- “He’s open to different ways of looking at things,”

Prior to renovating the vacant warehouse, Zemsky worked for his family owned food business and he traveled the country, visiting delicatessens his company served. He talked to store employees about deli meats and asked their views on his company.

“I learned some of the best ideas came from the deli clerks,” he said. The lesson, he said, was the importance of being a good listener. Good ideas, he said, come from people of all ages, races, job statuses and incomes. “If you exclude anyone based on anything, you are missing good ideas,” Zemsky said.

C grade leadership is not going to cut it for any community. Over and over I see elected officials who think they know everything, and who are not open to new ideas. Unfortunately it seems very few elected officials have the leadership qualities of Mr. Zemsky. Hopefully your community is getting better leadership than C grade.